Tubby is doing so much complaining about UK's offense, we went looking for a fresh angle at the problem.

Ryan Hogan is a very smart basketball player. His honesty is refreshing. "I think people are putting too much pressure on themselves, trying to force the action a little too much, instead of letting it come in the flow of the offense and letting it come naturally like it did in high school. It's something we're going to have to overcome. We must find it by tournament time."

This is not a new discovery for the sharp shooting sophomore. "I've noticed it for a while. Our offense is not too fluent." Hogan has been tougher on himself than he has been on the entire team. "I see myself rushing a little bit. You know you're doing something out of the ordinary instead of letting it come."

Although Hogan talks about wanting to be "perfect on the court", he isn't a freak about perfection, "my room is a little messy." If Hogan gets over the problem, he can end up being one of the most valuable subs UK has next month.

Quote of the year: Bob Burrow and Rick Robey had their jersey's retired at Rupp before UK stomped South Carolina. Burrow has held UK's rebounding record for almost 45 years. Averaging over 17 rebounds a game might be in the record books for another 45 years. Because his team finished No. 2 in America in 1955, his contributions have been slightly overlooked. The smile on Burrow's face when we talked equaled this comment, "I told C.M. Newton it's the greatest thing to ever happen to me. It's the highlight of my life." Burrow, who once scored 50 points against LSU, gets a couple of letters a month from fans who send pictures of him either in a UK uniform or in the NBA. He gladly gives an autograph and sends the picture back, "if they send a stamp."

As much as the All-American liked playing for Rupp, he is one of the many former UK stars who continue to tell me that Rupp's right hand man, Harry Lancaster never got enough respect. "Adolph Rupp was a great psychologist. He could get you ready to play. Now Adolph and Harry Lancaster would work together. Adolph would get you ready to play, and Coach Lancaster would call a time out and he would tell you what would work. Those two made a great pair."

1978 or 1999 ? Most basketball experts think todays players are much better than what we saw in the good old days. As much as he enjoyed getting his jersey retired at Rupp, Rick Robey won't concede and inch to todays players. When asked if his team could stay on the court with Tubby's team, the former UK center said, "I'd take my team against anybody." You could tell that Robey believes that the 1978 would crush 1999, but he was being politically correct.

Tough Basketball players: Merion Haskins, who played for UK in 1975, 76, and 77 sat next to me during the second half of the UK-South Carolina game. All I did was ask him if todays players were as tough as they were when he played. "Are you kidding ?, these guys don't know what tough is." While he was speaking, his old buddy and former teammate, James Lee was smiling and agreeing.

Next Jersey Retired: James Lee asked me when he thought his jersey was going to be retired. I guessed sometime in the next five years. The great sixth man from the '78 NCAA champs who qualifies as one of the most misunderstood UK stars of all time, doesn't think it will ever happen.  

Pitino strikes again: One of the big stories in the NBA is Ray Allen. The great young guard for Milwaukee dumped his agent and negotiated his own contract. By using a lawyer to finish up the deal, Allen saved over two million. Pitino was the first to predict that agents wouldn't be as important in pro ball. When Jamal Mashburn left early for the NBA, Pitino volunteered to negotiate Mash's first contract. Like Allen, the amount of money the former UK star was going to make was set, so, Pitino handled it, never took a dime, and advised Mash to give the money he saved to his mother.

From UK to Super Sunday: In 1968, in an effort to make some extra money while going to UK, Jim Daopoulous started officiating junior high football games for $2. Daopoulous, who teaches part time at UK, was one of the ref's for the Super Bowl. Daopoulous was rewarded by the NFL for their biggest game because he graded out number one among all the umpires for the entire season. Besides having one of the greatest experiences of his life, Jim has a funny story to tell when he hits the banquet circuit. "I kept on telling the other officials that nah, it (being nervous) wasn't going to effect me. It was just another game. I went out to the field and they started playing the national anthem and all of the hoopla that was going on and we got ready for the kickoff and I was on the wrong side of the field. I lined up on the wrong side of the field. Here I am with all this experience ! I took a little ribbing."

comments can be e-mailed to sportscut@mis.net . Alan Cutler is a motivational speaker, sports talk show host in Cincinnati and Lexington, and an award winning Lexington TV sportscaster who started covering UK in 1981. choose to have a great day alan s. cutler